Jacob&#39;s ladder



Sept. 22, 1942- A. HOPP ETAL JACOBS LADDER Filed July 3, 1940 2Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS.

0 A 5 WM z 5 IV/ TNESS.

Sept 22, 1942. A. HOPP ETAL 2,296,441

JACOBS LADDER Filed July 3, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 w 1% r a LED A004 PHHo p ROGER H WET/An INVENTORS.

0 I I m jV/TNEJS! ATTORNEYS.

Patented Sept. 22, 1942 U N 1 TE D STAT ES FATE N T O FF! CE JACOBSLADDER Application July 3, 1940, Serial No. 343,682

14 Claims.

The present invention relates to new and useful improvements in laddersand more particularly it pertains to ladders of the flexible type ofwhich the Well-known Jacobs ladder is one good example.

It is an object ofthepresent invention to provide a new and improvedladder of the aforementioned type which will have many advantages oversuch ladders as generally constructed and with which we are familiar.

Such ladders when not in use are generally stored in rolled form and itis an object of the present invention. to provide a new and novelconstruction which will permit of compact rolling of the ladder forstorage purposes.

Such ladders in use are generally thrown over the side of a ship and itis a further object of the present invention, so to construct the ladderthat fouling thereof will be prevented in the placing of the ladder .inposition for use.

.A featurelof .the .invention resides in the novel construction wherebyany length .of ladder may be constructed merely by adding or removingsteps and lengths of stiles or side chains.

Another important feature .of the invention resides in a novel form ofso-called ear. The ears of :such ladders are arranged ;to space the:ladder from the side of a ship, wall or the like, in order to give handand foot room for persons using the ladder.

Ears for ladders of this type as generally constructed have severaldisadvantages among the most serious of which is, that when the ears arejammed between the side of a ship and a small boat such for example as alifeboat, pilots boat or the like, the small .boat is often subjected toa staving in action.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an ear 'forladders of this type which will have suificient rigidity to maintain theladder in spaced relation with respect to a ships side, wall or the likeand which will have body weakness which will permit of a bending orcollapsing of an ear under ,a pressure which would be insufiicient tostave in the side of a lifeboat or similar small craft.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a new and novelconstruction whereby, should damage occur to one or more of the ears ofa ladder, the ladder will not become useless nor will the steps thereofassume angular position as so often happens in the breaking down ofladders of this type as generally constructed.

With the above and other objects in View, reference will be had to theaccompanying drawings and the following description and claims whereinis set forth two practical embodiments of the present invention.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a view in front elevation of a flexible ladder constructedin accordance with a preferred form of the present invention,

Figure '2 is a view in elevation taken at right angles to Figure 1,

Figure 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially on the line3--3 of Figure 1,

Figure 4 is a detail plan view of a ladder ear constructed in accordancewith the present invention,

Figure 5 is a view partly in elevation and partly in vertical section'taken-substantially-on the lne 5-5 of Figur Z,

Figure 6 is a detail sectional view on an enlarged scale, the view beingtaken substantially on the line 6-6 of Figure 2,

Figure 7 is a fragmentary side elevational view on an enlarged scaleillustrating a slightly modifled form of the invention, and;

Figure 8 is a d tail sectional view taken substantiallyon the line 88 ofFigured.

A ladder constructed in accordance with the present invention comprisessteps 10, ears II, and stiles I2, all of which parts are formed frommetal.

As :best illustrated in Figure 5, the steps 10 are formed from a lightmetal :and are of hollow form, each having top walls l3, side walls I4,the bottom edges of the side Walls each having an inwardly turned flange[5 which construction constitutes in effect an inverted channel. The topedge of each step is provided with two or more longitudinally extendingribs l6, see Figure 3, which provide tread surfaces for the steps aswell as lend rigidity thereto.

The ears H are formed from a relatively light sheet metal and arepreferably of oval form as best illustrated in Figure 4. The severalears ll, being of the same construction, the description of one it isbelieved will sufiice.

Defining the marginal edge of the ear I I, there is a flange 1 I. Thisflange l1 serves two purposes. First, it provides marginal rigidity forthe body portion of the ear and second, it provides :a relatively fiatsurface of sufficient area to maintain stable contact with the side of aship, wall or the like, as indicated at l8in Figure 3, the side of theship, wall or the like being designated H! in said figure. The marginalflange I1 is narrower at diametrically opposite points in line with thetransverse axis of the ear from which points it increases in width inopposite directions, its widest dimension being at two diametricallyopposite points 28 which are in line with the longitudinal axis of theear, as illustrated in Figure 4.

By this construction, the flange ll provides greater strength at thepoints 2!! than at the points 2| and furnishes the necessary bodyrigidity to maintain the oval form of the ears under ordinary use.

Each of the ears is provided with a centrall disposed depressed portion22 which is preferably rectangular in form, as best illustrated inFigure 4. This depressed portion provides means for attaching the stepsH] to the ears H, each side wall 14 of the steps being provided at eachend with an inwardly turned flange 23 for the reception of rivets or thelike 24 by means of which the steps are rigidly secured to the ears.

By formation of the depressed portion 22, the body portion of the ear isweakened along the lines designated A and B in Figure 4, which linesextend at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the ear, the purposeof which construction will be hereinafter more specifically described.

The stiles I2 are formed from chain and the steps and ears are securedthereto at spaced intervals by means of plates or cleats 25 which aresecured to the outer face of the depressed portion 22 by means of therivets 24 heretofore mentioned as employed to secure the steps to theears as best illustrated in Figure 6 of the drawings. At spacedintervals, one of the links 21 may be contracted transversely to adimension rendering it capable of being tightly embraced by the cleat orplate 25 in such a manner that when the cleat or plate 25 is secured inposition as shown in Figure 6, the contracted link, which is designated28 in the drawings, will be rigidly secured to the ear.

As will be apparent from Figures 2 and 3, the flange ll of the ear isprovided with notches 29 at diametrically opposite points in line withthe transverse axis of the ear, and these notches receive the legs ofthe'next adjacent link upon each end of the contracted link 28 in orderto provide a substantially flush surface at the point where the linksintersect the flanges of the cars.

It is desirable to have these links, which are designated 30 in thedrawings, rigidly attached to their respective ears, since were theypivotally mounted relatively thereto, there would be. a tendency topermit of a pivotal movement of the links 30 relatively to the earswhich might result in fouling of the stiles when the ladder is in rolledform. 1

Means is provided to secure the links 30 rigidly in the flanges oftheirrespective ears and in the preferred form of the invention, this meanscomprises a strap 32 which embraces the link and is secured to the bodyportion of the ears by means of rivets or the like 33.

By this construction it will be apparent that the links 30 as well asthe links 28 are attached rigidly to their respective ear members.Further it will be apparent that the stiles are not in any way loopedand are attached to the ears and the steps in such a manner that anydamage, such for example as crushing of an ear, or the breaking of astep, does not either lengthen or shorten the stiles, thus insuring allremaining steps occupying a true position at right angles to the stilesby which they are carried. Still further, a breaking down or crushing ofan ear, will not afiect the step by which it is carried or the breakingdown of a step will not necessarily affect an ear to which it isattached and still further, complete collapse of a step and ear will innomanner render the ladder incapable of use except for the particularstep and ear which has been damaged.

We will now describe the manner in which a ladder constructed inaccordance with the present invention will function and we will take as.an example the ladder as being used over the side of a ship for thepurpose of disembarking persons from a ship into a lifeboat or similarsmall craft.

The ladder being attached at its upper end. to a suitable point upon thedeck or rail of a ship, when thrown over the side will uncoil withoutfouling. This result is obtained by reason of the rigid attachment ofthe links 28 and 30 to their respective ears. As the ladder unrolls toits extended length, the ears II will engage the side of the ship asindicated in Figure 3 of the drawings, spacing the steps I!) sufficientdistance from the side of the ship to provide ample foot and hand roomfor a person descending the ladder.

Should, however, there be a rough sea and the small craft be pitchedagainst the side of the ship, pinching the ears between the side of thesmall craft and the side of the ship, the ears will serve to space thesmall craft from the side of the ship. However, the ears I I in thepresent invention are so constructed that when the small craft ispitched violently against the side of the ship, those cars which may bepinched between the small craft and the side of a ship will crush downalong either'or .both of the lines A or B, which action'will relieve theimpact of the blow and prevent a staving-in of the side of the smallcraft.

It is to be understood that the construction employed is so designedthat the afore described action will taken place and furthermore thatthe metals employed will be of such character as to render such actioninfallible.

In a case such as above described, it is obvious that where one only ofthe ears II of a step may be crushed, the step connected to such earswould still maintain its true horizontal position although one end ofthe step would swing closer to the ship. However, this would necessarilybe at a point sufliciently low in the ladder that it would not amount toa serious handicap to the operation thereof.

In that form of the invention illustrated in Figures '7 and 8, the earsH, the retaining cleat or plate 25, and stiles 12 are of the sameconstruction as in the preferred form of the invention.

In the modified form of the invention, the flange I! of the ear isnotched as at 40 to receive the legs of the links 30 as in the preferredform of the invention. However, in the modified form the means forretaining the links rigidly with respect to the ears is different. Thisretaining means in the modified form of the invention consists of aprojecting lug or the like 4| formed integral with the flange I1, thelug 4| having curved side edges 42 to engage the legs of the link 30.

In assembling a ladder of the modified form, the lug 4| occupies thesame plane as that of the flange I! until the ear is attached to thestile, The link 30 is moved to a position at right angles to that inwhich it is shown in Figure 7 in order that the lug 4| may pass betweenthe legs thereof after which the link is positioned as shown in Figure 7and the lug 4| bent inwardly of the ear ll into clamping engagement withthe legs of the link with sufficient force to move them 'into therecesses M3 and retain them therein against movement relative thereto.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that the present inventionprovides a new and novel construction whereby Jacobs ladders and laddersof similar type may be formed entirely from sheet metal, may havesuflicient strength for all intended uses and purposes, and yet underextreme conditions of use be incapable of rendering damage to smallcraft should the same be violently pitched against the ladder ears andthe ears pinched between the small craft and the side of a ship.

Furthermore, the present construction pro vides for compact rolling ofthe ladder when not in use and insures a free unrolling of the ladderwithout fouling, even though the ladder is hurriedly and roughly throwninto operation.

Still a further feature of the present construction and an importantone, is that by reason of the fact that the links 32 are rigidly securedagainst movement relatively to the ears ll, there are no moving partsbetween which the hands or other portions of the body of a person uponthe ladder could be injured by pinching or the like.

It will be understood that various types of metals may be employed andwhile the invention has been herein illustrated in its preferred forms,it is to be further understood that it is not to be limited to thespecific construction herein shown,

and that it may be practiced in such other forms as rightfully fallwithin the scope of the appended claims,

Having thus described the invention, what we claim as new is:

1. A ladder of the type described comprising in combination, a pluralityof ladder steps, flexible stiles, spacing ears carried by the ends ofsaid steps, means for rigidly securing the ears and the stiles to theends of the steps, and additional means for rigidly securing the stilesto the spacing ears.

2. A ladder of the type described comprising in combination, a pluralityof ladder steps, flexible stiles, spacing ears carried by the ends ofsaid steps, means for rigidly securing the ears and the stiles to theends of the steps, and additional means for rigidly securing the stilesto the spacing ears, said rigid attachment of the stiles to the earsbeing at points spaced with respect to the rigid attachment of thestiles with the ends of the steps.

3. A ladder of the type described comprising in combination, a pluralityof ladder steps, flexible stiles, spacing ears carried by the ends ofsaid steps. means for rigidly securing the ears and the stiles to theends of the steps, and additional means for rigidly securing the stilesto the spacing ears, said rigid attachment of the stiles to the earsbeing at points spaced with respect to the rigid attachment of thestiles with the ends of the steps and upon opposite sides thereof.

4. A ladder of the type described comprising in combination, a pluralityof ladder steps. flexible stiles formed of pivotally connected links,and spacing ears, means for rigidly securing the spacing ears to theends of the steps and for embracing one of the links of the stiles forrigidly securing the steps to the stiles, and separate means for rigidlysecuring the stiles to the spacing ears.

5. A ladder'of the type described comprising in combination, a pluralityof ladder steps, flexible stiles formed of pivotally connected links,and spacing ears, means for rigidly securing the spacing ears to theends of the steps and for embracing one of the links of the stiles forrigidly securing the steps to the stiles, and separate means for rigidlysecuring the stiles to the spacing ears, said means comprising a straplike member carried by the spacing ears and embracing one of the linksof the stiles.

6. A ladder of the type described comprising in combination, a pluralityof ladder steps, flexible stiles formed of pivotally connected openlinks, and spacing ears, means for rigidly securing the spacing ears tothe ends of the steps and for embracing one of the links of the stilesfor rigidly securing the steps to the stiles, and separate means forrigidly securing the stiles to the spacing ears, said means comprising alug projecting from the spacing ears and extending through the openlinks of the stiles for clamping the stiles to the ears.

7. A spacing ear for ladders of the type described comprising a bodyportion of sheet metal, a flange extending angularly from the bodyportion to impart marginal rigidity thereto, said body portion beingweakened along predetermined lines within the confines of the flange toprovide zones of collapse within the body portion of the ear.

8. A spacing ear for ladders of the type described comprising a sheetmetal member of oval form, a flange defining the marginal edge of saidmember and a centrally disposed rectangular depressed area struck out ofthe plane of the body portion of the member, two of the opposed sideedges of the depressed area forming lines of fold upon which the ear maycollapse under pressure.

9. A spacing ear for ladders of the type described comprising a sheetmetal member of substantially oval form, and a flange defining themarginal edge of said member, said flange being of greatest Width at theends of the member and gradually reducing in width in the direction ofthe center point of each side of the member.

10. A ladder of the type described comprising in combination, a pair ofstiles, a plurality of steps, a pair of spacing ears for each of saidsteps, said spacing ears being secured one to each end of each step, asingle means for rigidly securing the stiles and the spacing ears to theends of the steps, and separate means for rigidly securing the stiles tothe spacing ears at the marginal edge of the ears.

11. A ladder of the type described comprising in combination, a pair ofstiles, a plurality of steps, a pair of spacing ears for each of saidsteps, said spacing ears being secured one to each end of each step, asingle means for rigidly securing the stiles and the spacing ears to theends of the steps, and separate means for rigidly securing the stiles tothe spacing ears at the marginal edge of the ears, said means comprisingintegral portions of the ears having interlocking engagement with thestiles.

12. A ladder of the type described comprising in combination, a pair ofstil s formed of a plurality of pivotally connected open links, aplurality of steps, a pair of spacing ears for each of said steps, saidspacing ears being secured, one to each end of each step, a flangedefining the marginal edge of each of said ears, means for rality ofsteps, a pair of spacing ears'for each of said steps, said spacing earsbeing secured, one to each end of each step, a flange defining themarginal edge of each of said ears, means for rigidly securing thestiles and the spacing ears to the ends of the steps, and means forsecuring the stiles to the spacing ears, said last mentioned meansincluding notches in said flange for receiving the stiles and means forretaining the stiles within the notches.

14. A ladder of the type described comprising in combination, a pair ofstiles formed of a plurality of pivotally connected open links, aplurality of steps, a pair of spacing ears for each of said steps, saidspacing ears being secured, oneto each end of each step, a flangedefining the 'marginal edge of each of said ears, means for rigidlysecuring the stiles and the spacing ears to the ends of the steps, andmeans for securing the stiles to the spacing ears, said last mentionedmeans including notches in the flange for receiving the legs of the openlinks of the stiles, and means for retaining the legs of the open linksof the stiles in the notches.

ADOLPH HOPP. ROGER H. MARTIN,

